I agree with your assessment. Mahayana and Hinayana are two different paths. What are we Buddhist disciples to do? Where can we find Shakyamuni Buddha’s Proper Dharma?​QV ​

Answer:

Mahayana and Hinayana are one and the same path. It is the teachers and cultivators who do not understand yet who think they are different.

What are you ordinary cultivators supposed to do?

That is a very good question. I’ll elaborate a little more than I normally do for your sake.

You resolve to cultivate Mahayana. Hinayana is called the Half Word Teaching, meaning it is not complete. Now that you know, why would you settle for only a subset of the Buddha’s entire teaching?

Those who prefer to settle for less do so because they have inadequate blessings.

Therefore, you should avoid making the same mistakes as they do. Instead, look for opportunities to plant Mahayana blessings. Then relentlessly create merit and virtue with Mahayana.

At the same time, seek out Mahayana teachers. In other words, you have to make the effort to go look for them. If you exhaust every avenue to seek them out, then they are more inclined to teach you when you meet with them.

Once you have enough Mahayana blessings you will encounter competent Mahayana teachers.